John Joseph Murphy Former Mayor of St. John’s, NL (September 24, 1922 – December 15, 2010 ) was a businessman and politician, and the 11th mayor of St. John's,

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

, Canada. Born the son of John Murphy and Gertrude Wadden in St. John's,

, he was educated at

Saint Bonaventure's College St. Bonaventure's College (commonly called St. Bon's) is an independent kindergarten to grade 12 Catholic School in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. It is located in the St. John's Ecclesiastical District, adjacent to the Roman Cat ...

. He worked for a time as a radio announcer with VOCM, but, following his 1951 marriage to Marjorie Halley, joined Halley and Company, a dry goods wholesale and retail firm. Following the death of his father-in-law, Patrick Halley, in 1956, Murphy became president of the company and , as a successful businessman, expanded its iconic retail chain, The Arcade, to nine stores in the St. John's and

Conception Bay South Conception Bay South is a town located on the southern shore of Conception Bay on the Avalon Peninsula of the island of Newfoundland, Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The town is commonly called C.B.S. Conception Bay South is the ...

region. Murphy ran unsuccessfully as a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

candidate in the 1966 provincial election and again in a by-election in 1970. Elected to St. John's City council in 1973, receiving the highest number of votes, he became deputy mayor. In 1977, he ran unsuccessfully against incumbent mayor Dorothy Wyatt, but defeated her in 1981. He won by

acclamation An acclamation is a form of election that does not use a ballot. It derives from the ancient Roman word ''acclamatio'', a kind of ritual greeting and expression of approval towards imperial officials in certain social contexts. Voting Voice vot ...

in 1985, did not run in the 1990 election, but was elected again in 1993, He retired from city politics in 1997 after losing his bid for re-election as Mayor. During his 17 year tenure as Deputy Mayor and Mayor, Murphy accomplished many things, but his legacy would be his success in the start of the revitalization of his historic city by lobbying federal and provincial governments for funds and programs to restore downtown residential properties. The city also began a housing program which won several national awards. Mayor John Murphy, as he was always known until his death, served as President of The St. John’s Board of Trade, President of The Rotary Group of St. John’s and was active as a member of The Stokers Group of Rotary for over 50 years. He served as a member of The National Capital Commission in Ottawa under Pierre E. Trudeau. As a strong proponent of education, he served on The Royal Commission on Education in Newfoundland in 1967/68, sponsored public speaking contests amongst students in St. John’s, and established a scholarship at Memorial University School of Business. On June 24, 1985, Murphy was appointed a Member of the Order of Canada and in May 2005, Murphy received the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws, ''

honoris causa An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...

'' from the

Memorial University of Newfoundland Memorial University of Newfoundland, also known as Memorial University or MUN (), is a public university in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, based in St. John's, with satellite campuses in Corner Brook, elsewhere in Newfoundland and ...

. However, he was most proud to receive the Freedom of The City of St. John’s, conferred on him at City Hall in June 2010, just months preceding his death.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Murphy, John Joseph 1922 births Businesspeople from St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador Canadian people of Irish descent 2010 deaths Mayors of St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador Members of the Order of Canada